Long Yongtu: China still possesses strong foreign investment attraction, with two core advantages

Ask AI · How Did Long Yongtu’s Lessons from Entering the World Shape His Views on Foreign Investment?

By | Yuan Xiaoli

Edited by | Liu Peng

On March 25, at the 2026 Boao Forum for Asia annual conference “Invest in China, Share the Future” themed sub-forum, Long Yongtu—former Vice Minister of Commerce for International Trade, and China’s Chief Representative for accession negotiations to the WTO—delivered remarks on how China in the new era can continue to attract foreign investment.

Long Yongtu pointed out that as countries around the world have been rolling out policies to attract capital, international competition for attracting foreign investment is growing increasingly fierce. Against this backdrop, China—thanks to its unique comparative advantages—still has strong appeal to foreign investors. The core of this appeal lies in two areas: a complete manufacturing industry chain and abundant talent resources.

First, foreign investors can leverage China-based, globally deployable advantages in the supply chain. Long Yongtu said that China has the world’s largest manufacturing ecosystem in terms of scale and the most complete range of sectors. After years of deep integration between “bringing in” and “going global,” China has built a complete, efficient network of global supply chains and industrial chains. When foreign enterprises invest in China, they can quickly integrate into this mature system. If companies have sufficient strength, they also have a strong opportunity to become top-tier or leading enterprises within the industrial chain. Taking Shanghai as an example, as of now, the number of multinational corporations’ regional headquarters recognized cumulatively has reached 1,084. By setting up regional headquarters in China, these companies quickly expand their global operations—this is precisely the twice-the-effort, double-the-results effect brought by investing in China.

Second, China has abundant human resources. Long Yongtu believes that in an era where technological innovation is advancing day by day, talent has become the most core competitive advantage. Over the past seven years, China has fully leveraged its talent resource advantages and achieved remarkable accomplishments in technological innovation. Foreign investors in China can also fully benefit from this talent dividend. This year, China’s university graduates total 12.7 million; among them, students in science and engineering account for about 7 million. Large numbers of graduates will grow into engineers. This vast talent reserve provides strong support for foreign enterprises to set up R&D centers in China and promote innovation-driven development. At present, only in Shanghai alone, the number of R&D centers established by foreign companies has already reached 647.

Long Yongtu pointed out that he hopes foreign enterprises will fully seize the two major advantages of China’s industrial chains and talent, enter China quickly, and deepen their presence in the Chinese market. While realizing their own development, they should also expand their global influence, and jointly advance open cooperation and win-win outcomes.